November 17, 2020
Mergers and Acquisitions
Marathon Capital, LLC (“Marathon Capital”) is pleased to announce the sale of Lendlease Group’s (“Lendlease”) energy development business to alternative asset manager Magnetar Capital (“Magnetar”). Lendlease is an international property and investment group headquartered in Sydney, Australia with operations in Australia, Asia, Europe and the Americas. The newly formed company, Vesper Energy, will be led by CEO, Craig Carson and its management team from its headquarters in Dallas, Texas. Marathon Capital acted as exclusive financial advisor to Lendlease Americas on the transaction.
While at Lendlease Americas, the Vesper Energy management team commercialized over 680 MW of energy projects and maintains a 3GW solar and 2.5GWh energy storage development pipeline across the United States. Magnetar’s investment into the newly established Vesper Energy entity enables the management team to continue their work in the development and deployment of a unique pipeline of solar and storage projects.
Marathon Capital led the marketing, negotiation, and execution of the solar unit’s sale to Vesper Energy. The solar unit was comprised of over 3 GW of solar, solar plus storage and stand-alone storage pipeline, with a focus on PJM and CAISO markets, as well as a seasoned 13-member development and management team.
“It was a pleasure to work with Lendlease and its solar development team on this important transaction. We are pleased to have brought together this deal and look forward to Vesper Energy’s future success in the developing utility scale solar and storage projects,” said Gary Greenblatt, Senior Managing Director at Marathon Capital.
“It is always rewarding to participate, even in small part, in the formation of a new renewable energy developer, particularly one with as much potential as the Vesper Energy team,” said Felipe Arrazola, Director at Marathon Capital.
“Growing a successful renewable energy business in the U.S. has been impactful for Lendlease, and we are glad to see it now in a position where it can continue to grow and flourish as the industry evolves,” said Denis Hickey, CEO of Lendlease Americas.
Perkins Coie LLP acted as legal advisor to Lendlease.
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About Lendlease
Lendlease is a leading international property and investment group with operations in Australia, Asia, Europe and the Americas. Headquartered in Sydney, Australia, and listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, Lendlease has approximately 11,000 employees internationally. Our core capabilities are reflected in our operating segments of Development, Construction and Investments. The combination of these three segments provides us with a sustainable competitive advantage and allows us to provide innovative integrated solutions for our customers. The Americas region, headquartered in New York, offers core capabilities in property and communities’ development, construction, investment management and infrastructure development. Our expertise covers multiple sectors including arts & culture, aviation, commercial, education, energy, government, healthcare, hotels & resorts, industrial, life science, military communities, mixed-use, multi-site, residential, senior living, telecommunications, transportation and urban regeneration.
www.lendlease.com